Fences by Theasy.com

Cort Theatre, Broadway By Dan Dinero BOTTOM LINE: An excellent, if not particularly innovative, production of Wilson's Pulitzer Prize-winning play; go for the acting. August Wilson i…

Patti LuPone Hosts Sunday's Drama Desk Awards; A Starry, Starry Season; Tovah Feldshuh, Sherman Brothers Honored; Broadway By the Year Season Finale
by Ellis Nassour

I Could Take Up Painting..., by Michael Portantiere

A portrait of Promises, Promises stars Kristin Chenoweth and Sean Hayes is added to the Broadway Wall of Fame at Tony's DiNapoli Restaurant.

A question of sexuality reveals theatre's fatal flaw by Matt Trueman

The row over whether a gay actor can convincingly play a straight man is not a case of homophobia. It's simply a reminder that none of us can separate performance from reality

Where is Brighton's cutting-edge gay theatre? by Bella Todd

Their city might be one of the most tolerant places in Britain, but Brightonians are too smug about their anti-establishment attitude - and the LGBT community is woefully under-represented i…

Enter God, stage left

Michael Billington: Sex and politics permeate the theatre. But religion rarely gets a look in - and it's time for a comeback

DIVA TALK: Chatting with Tony Nominee Kate Baldwin Plus Six Questions for Valerie Harper

2010 Fences Tony Nominee Marsalis Considers Writing Broadway Musical

'Law & Order' School of Drama By AMY CHOZICK and ELLEN GAMERMAN

Over the course of 20 years, one television show employed 20,639 actors. These are their stories.

See 11-Year-Old Lea Michelle Make Faces As Her Mom Talks About Sex

Fresh Face: Who's That Girl? American Idiot's Christina Sajous on Her Extraordinary Debut

CELEB PlayBlogger Enron's Stephen Kunken: May 20

Directors and the question of diversity by Lucy Popescu

The JMK award for young directors aims to pick out the top directors of tomorrow - but how do we ensure that the pool of talent is as broad as possible?

Rachel Rockwell pursuing her dream job - calling the shots BY HEDY WEISS

This is the final weekend to catch director-choreographer Rachel Rockwell's hugely accomplished, altogether riveting revival of "Ragtime," the glorious musical by Lynn Ahrens, Stephen Flaher…

Shakespeare's Flying Circus By Alexandra Cheney

Midway through their sold-out eight-show run, the Sonnet Repertory Theater and Matchbook Productions took flight on four low-flying trapezes to place a modern spin on "Richard II."

'Fuerza Bruta' shatters conventional theater experience BY MARY HOULIHAN

Hadar Galron on her play Mikveh

Playwright Hadar Galron, whose play Mikveh is playing through June 5th at Theater J, talks with Joel Markowitz about the play's themes and responds to the controversy that has followed Mikveh from Israel to DC.

The Inner Circle: Video-Tony Kushner and Hallie Foote by Adam Feldman

VIDEO: Playbill Backstage Peeks Behind Curtain of Everyday Rapture

Sneak Peek at Tarzan Vet Josh Strickland in the Hot New Reality Show Holly's World

Happy Liza Doolittle Day!

Tony Award Host: Who Will It Be? By Frank Rizzo

"Glee" Madonna Episode Sequel Is Official

Photo Op: Putting Them Together: Behind the Scenes with Sondheim on Sondheim

PHOTO FLASH: Nick Blaemire, Celina Carvajal, Shonn Wiley, et al. Attend Blackouts & Breakdowns Reading

PHOTO FLASH: Kelsey Grammer, Angela Lansbury, Sherie Rene Scott, et al. Honor James M. Nederlander at Broadway League Gala

PHOTO FLASH: Kristin Chenoweth, Katie Finneran, Cady Huffman, Gregory Jbara, Matthew Morrison at CANY Benefit

PHOTO FLASH: Christopher Ashley, Jonathan Cake, Rachel Dratch, Claudia Shear, Tommy Tune at Restoration Opening

Photo Op: Celeb-Magnet Fences Draws Will Smith, Aretha Franklin, Lost's Jorge Garcia and More

PHOTO CALL: Starry Night at Broadway's Fences

Critic's Notebook: 'American Idiot' and the fate of the contemporary musical by Charles McNulty

Does the artfully Green Day jukebox musical on Broadway, represent the dawning of a new age or the end of a line?

Body Slam to the American Dream By BEN BRANTLEY

"The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity," Kristoffer Diaz's comedy about television wrestling, courses with the vital sap of an able-bodied satire enjoying a love-hate affair with its subject.

Kristoffer Diaz's wrestling ring packs a punch by Joe Dziemianowicz (****)

Whomp! Oof! Wrestling play packs a punch By ELISABETH VINCENTELLI (****)

The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity
Reviewedby:Patrick Lee

Kristoffer Diaz's vivid, viscerally exciting play about the world of pro wrestling gets a top-notch production at Second Stage.

THE ELABORATE ENTRANCE OF CHAD DEITY reviewed by David Sheward

Kristoffer Diaz delivers a body slam of a play with this political satire at Second Stage. It's got everything-politics, muscles, explosions, and hard-hitting critiques of the state of Ameri…

The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity - Review by Matt Windman

Diaz' comedic drama is clever and consistently entertaining.

Professional Wrestling As Art and Politics by Jonathan Mandell

Professional wrestling has arrived back on the New York stage with a smack and a crack and a thud that could not be more eloquent.

The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity
Review by Matthew Murray

You ultimately accept everything they do as authentic, not because the trappings are pristine but because Diaz and Torres have so adroitly created a world within The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity that mirrors - often uncomfortably - the one forever percolating just outside the theater.

'The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity' exposes the racial games played for mad money BY MICHAEL SOMMERS

Diaz writes flavorfully, energetically and with an insightful view of both the wrestling racket and cultural politics.

The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity by Elyse Sommer

A tasty mix of lively staging and a clever use of a background that makes you wonder why no one has coupled it with political satire before.

The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity
Review by Marilyn Stasio

Grappling with race and identity BY ROBERT FELDBERG

Using wrestling's racial stereotyping and ethnic insensitivity as a metaphor for what's happening in the country, as the world changes around us, isn't terribly profound.
But Diaz is a talented writer, and it'll be interesting to see what he comes up with next.

PHOTO FLASH: Corbin Bleu, James Gandolfini, Marcia Gay Harden, Matthew Settle, Anna Torv, et al. at Banana Shpeel Opening

PHOTO CALL: Stars Attend Cirque du Soleil Banana Shpeel Opening

Photo Op: A Zany Opening for Cirque du Soleil's Banana Shpeel

Banana Shpeel
Review by Matthew Murray

Banana Shpeel
Review by Steven Suskin

Banana Shpeel
Reviewedby:Dan Bacalzo

Cirque du Soleil's latest extravaganza has plenty of razzle-dazzle, but is only mildly entertaining.

Please the Court By Jenelle Riley

Frequent attorney John Larroquette gets dark for 'Oliver Parker!'

PHOTO CALL: Oliver Parker! Opens at Cherry Lane

Sitcomish Squalor and Dysfunction By CHARLES ISHERWOOD

In Elizabeth Meriwether's comedy "Oliver Parker!" an adolescent boy and his alcoholic older companion seem to be in a sitcom, but darker shadings emerge.

Photo Op: Billy Crudup & Phoebe Strole Put the Pedal to the Metal in Adam Rapp's New Play

PHOTO CALL: Rapp's The Metal Children, with Billy Crudup, Opens Off-Broadway

The Metal Children
Review by Marilyn Stasio

The Metal Children - Review by Matt Windman

"The Metal Children" is an involving piece of theater that delves into the passionate extremes that have led to our country's Tea Party protest movement.

More on 'That Face' by Elisabeth Vincentelli

A Commanding Debut By TERRY TEACHOUT

"That Face," a tale about a grossly dysfunctional upper-middle-class family written by 19-year-old Polly Stenham, is an exhilarating first effort full of promise of even better things.

A Streetcar Named Desire

An intensely intimate production of likely to generate out-of-town curiosity.

This Wide Night -- Review By Frank Scheck

Superb performances by Edie Falco and Alison Pill enliven this static drama about the reunion of two former prison cellmates.

Sleazy French Doctor Gets Rich With Phony Ailments: Review by John Simon (****)

MITZI GAYNOR: RAZZLE DAZZLE! MY LIFE BEHIND THE SEQUINS reviewed by David Sheward

Legendary Mitzi Gaynor is younger than springtime and proves she's still our honey bun in this razzle-dazzle set at Feinstein's. And oh, those stories

Children of Eden by Victor Gluck

Melodic and moving Stephen Schwartz musical from Book of Genesis gets innovative production from director Tom Wojtunik

Gabriel by Victor Gluck

Taut production of new W.W. II thriller set on the island of Guernsey under Nazi occupation delves into the supernatural

The Housewives of Mannheim by Stewart Schulman

Whether it's a case of art imitating life or life as art... some very provocative questions are raised

The Usher's Ball by Stewart Schulman

Touches on themes of love, loss, the futility of war, and the psychological cost to the lives of the soldiers

24th Annual MAC Awards at B.B. King's by John Hoglund

In a sweepingly eclectic show, the Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Club(MAC) presented their 24th annual awards gala

SOUND ADVICE: "ROOMS," DOUG AND NIKKI by Rob Lester

The Whipping Man
Review by Bob Verini

A celebration of life and love By Louise Kennedy

"Prelude to a Kiss" is a fable as well as a play - and a moving one at that - enacted with delicacy and precision.

JEWTOPIA is a Hidden Gem by Walter Bender

Peter Filichia's Diary: With a Little Bit of Lucky

Drew Hirshfield plays Albert Einstein in Steve Martin-written play

B'way to Reba: Come back by Michael Riedel

Paul Reubens' The Pee-wee Herman Show to Play Broadway's Stephen Sondheim Theatre in October

The Secret Word Is: Broadway! The Pee-wee Herman Show to Hit the Rialto in Fall 2010

Pull Up a "Chairry": The Pee-wee Herman Show Is Heading to Broadway

The Scottsboro Boys to Open at Broadway's Lyceum Theatre on October 31

Kander & Ebb Will Return to Broadway Oct. 7 With First Preview of Scottsboro; Opening Is Oct. 31

The Scottsboro Boys Sets Dates at Broadway's Lyceum Theatre

Jeff Goldblum to Star in London Revival of Neil Simon's Prisoner of Second Avenue

Jeff Goldblum to Star in Neil Simon's The Prisoner of Second Avenue in the West End

Jeff Goldblum Moving to West End's Second Avenue

Ayckbourn's Life of Riley Will Get U.S. Premiere at Old Globe; Simon's BB Book-Ends Planned

Works by Alan Ayckbourn, Kristoffer Diaz, Tracy Letts, Neil Simon, et al. Set for Old Globe's 2010-2011 Winter Season

Two Neil Simon plays and a hip-hop drama will open 2010-11 season at San Diego's Old Globe

Rezo Gabriadze's The Battle of Stalingrad Replaces Ermon and Ramona in Lincoln Center Festival Lineup

"Ain't It Good?" Children of Eden Extends in Queens

Lucy DeVito, Conchata Ferrell, Rhea Perlman to Perform Love, Loss and What I Wore at Geffen Playhouse

Perlman, DeVito and Ferrel Announced for Love, Loss and What I Wore at the Geffen

Jennifer Cody, Sebastian LaCause, Jerry Mitchell, et al. Set for June 6 Broadway Bares: Classic

Broadway Bares: Classic to Feature Jerry Mitchell, Sebastian LaCause, Jennifer Cody

Rick Batalla and Henry Phillips' CHiPS the Musical to Play Falcon Theatre in June

Lord of the Rings' Billy Boyd to Star in U.K. Tour of Sunshine on Leith Musical

Craig Higginson's Dream of the Dog, Starring Janet Suzman, to Transfer to Trafalgar Studio 2

Carla Zilbersmith dies at 47; singer, actress and comedian By Dennis McLellan

She dramatized her struggle with Lou Gehrig's disease in a one-woman stage show and inspired others with how she faced death.

Cheyenne Jackson, John Cameron Mitchell, Bruce Vilanch, B.D. Wong, et al. to Perform Gay Pride Edition of Celebrity Autobiography

Celebrity Autobiography: Gay Pride Edition to Feature John Cameron Mitchell and Cheyenne Jackson

"My Fair Lady" Remake Still on Track

Will Drew Barrymore Direct "Wizard of Oz" Film Sequel?

Bonham Carter to star in BBC1 drama Toast

YouTube's Miranda Sings to Play London Joined by West End Stars Strallen, Atherton, Boys

Tony Winner Sutton Foster Books June Dates at Café Carlyle

Bernadette Peters to Perform at MTC Spring Gala

La Cage's Cagelles and Jonathan Groff Tapped for Out Magazine's Hot List

Cavalia to Play Meadowlands in June

Matthew Settle Set for Chicago's "Talkback" Series

Idiot's Peacock and Sheba's Hoeppner Complete Cast of Richardson's Veritas

Alan Alda, John Lithgow, Kelli O'Hara, Yo-Yo Ma Set for World Science Festival Gala

Bowersox and DeWyze to Square Off for "American Idol" Crown; Four Audition Cities Announced

George Street's Creating Claire, with Barbara Walsh, Opens May 21

Franz, Ambrose, Williams and Lauria Perform at Berkshire Playwrights Gala May 21

Belcon, Alexander, Bolton and Iacono Sing About The Last Smoker in America May 21

Baker, Mitchell, Lynch, Brown and More Bring Porgy and Bess to Life in NJ Starting May 21

CTG's Inishmore to Feature Chris Pine, Zoe Perry, Ian Alda and More

This Wide Night, with Edie Falco and Alison Pill, Extends Off-Broadway Run

Naked Angels' This Wide Night Extends Run Through June 27

"Saved By the Bell" Star Diamond Set for Awesome 80's Prom

Rona Barrett to Premiere Nothing But The Truth at L.A.'s Paley Center

Theater Listings: May 21 - 27

Selective listings from theater critics of The New York Times.

Kate Baldwin, Viola Davis, Douglas Hodge, Laura Linney, Bobby Steggert, et al. Win ITBA Awards

Bobby Steggert to Receive Dorothy Loudon Starbaby Award at Theatre World Awards

Bobby Steggert to Receive Dorothy Loudon Starbaby Award at Theatre World Awards

Katie Finneran, Anthony LaPaglia, Billy Elliot Stars to Receive Awards from Inside Broadway

Katie Finneran, Anthony LaPaglia and Billy Elliot Stars Among Broadway Beacon Awards Honorees

Susan Hilferty, Rebecca Patterson Win League of Professional Theatre Women Awards

Hilferty and Patterson Recognized by League of Professional Theatre Women

Lilly Awards to Honor Mary Rodgers; Chenoweth and Steinem to Participate

Frank Wildhorn to Receive USC's Tommy Award

Drama League Awards Presented May 21; Williams and Urie Host